Newbie needs help!

[jpwarhal]

Hi,

I am a newbie that just bought a 2004 banshee that has 40 hrs on it. I need some recommendations on how to care for my new toy?

What 2 stroke oil should I use?

What do I need to do to maintenance the bike and how often...like change oil , spark plugs, lube chassis, re-ring pistons, ETC?

and anyother suggestions that may help my quest on keeping it in top shape?

 

Thank you in advance for any imput

[96dragbanshee]

For your toy that has 40 hours on it already, it is about time to be looking into rebuilding the top end to save money in the long run. As far as normal upkeep i would suggest running yamaha full synthetic oil in the bottom end. This is quite pricey but it has the best defense against breakdown. In the premix oil i personnally like the 2 cycle oil put out buy honda. It is by far better than the yamalube that yamaha puts out for two strokes. Run the highest octane gas at a regular pump probably 93 or 91 depending on the store. It is the best. THe biggest thing to remember about a quad like a banshee is that everytime you have to fix something on one cyclinder you have to do the same to the other side. The pistons and honing of cyclinders should happen about every 50 to 60 run hours depending on the mods done to your bike. dont wait until something goes wrong to rebuild or the cost will be very high. Spark plugs should be changed about every 10 hours assuming they dont foul before that. This makes sure that the premixed gas is getting burned. If you feel your new toy isnt performing on the plugs you got try a hotter plug or cooler one. If you are fouling them see if it is oil or carbon foul and change accordingly. The bottom end oil should be changed about every 4th or 5th ride. Banshees have a notorious problem of freezing up in the bottom end if not cared for correctly. To keep it in tip top shape always let your quad warm up and cool down before shutting it off. Failure to do this can cause crackinging in the case. That is a bitch to repair most of the time it requires a new motor. I run ngk br8es plugs they burn hotter and foul less.

[watkins]

Here are some tips for you...

 

1. Buy a Clymers manual

2. Read the Clymers manual

 

ok.. now for the good stuff:

 

The best way to determine when its time for a new top end is to check the compression periodically, to do this you will need a reliable compression checker for this. Some top ends can last a long ass time.

 

For premix Yamalube works fine for most all banshee applications, I used it for a while, now I am using SuperM but it all comes down to preference and smells. But Yamalube is cheap and works.

 

As far as regular maint. well... I change the tranny oil after every other trip and I use BelRay Gearsaver 80w Oil for my tranny.

 

Wash the bike after every trip and clean the airfilter after every trip. After washing the bike start it up to burn up any moisture that may have worked its way in somewhere. Then go over the bike and check all the bolts to make sure none have rattled loose (it will happen, even with locktite those bastards will rattle loose). Then go over all the zerk fittings and pump them full of grease.

 

These are high performance bikes, but can be very reliable if you maintain them properly.

 

But the main thing you want to do is get the Clymers manual.

Edited December 27, 2005 by watkins

[JET 99]

Mr Watkins has said it best THE CLYMERS your guide to the banshee. proper upkeep is the key and the book covers most of it. 96s riding still could be extreme or his riding condition are fubar compression checks are key to top end condition eventualy you will want to mod it but good preventive maint is a key to doing corrective maint ie..... broken. If you take care and change the gear case oil and use a good 2-mix keep your gas fresh air filter clean and use premieum octane you can get a couple of good riding years out of a stock motor, if you get the bug, your mods will probably come before the failures 96 mentioned above.

 

 

 

Jim

Edited December 27, 2005 by JET 99

[Ducman]

First off dont listen to 96dragbanshee, 80% of his post is misinformation. Unless your actually running a fully built drag-only banshee 50 - 60 hrs before rebuilding the top end is rediculous. Nobody would own a banshee if maintenance was that insane. Most people go waaaay beyond 100 hrs of hard riding before needing a top end rebuild, if you have top end issues before 100 hrs you've got other problems or its an all out drag or race motor where reliability is somwhat compromised for performance. Second, get a Clymers manual like mentioned, it has all the maintenance and repair info you'll ever need.

 

What 2 stroke oil should I use - pick one and stick with it, I like Maxima Cator 929 mixed at 40:1, otheres like amsoil, ect , yamalube at 32:1 is fine too but smells bad, just make sure you drain the tank before you start with new premix gas/oil, because a lot of oils will not mix and push another out of solution.

 

transmission oil - change every 3rd ride or every 30 hours or so (or whatever climers says to, I probably go longer than what I'm recommending) I use Belray gear saver 75 or 80W, or you can use regular 4stroke engine oil as long as it doesn't have friction modifiers (most synthetics like Mobil 1 do have modifiers)

spark plugs - B8es or Br8es they should last quite a while on a stock bike, inpect them and if they are clean, put them back in, or change ever 40+ hrs or so, gap at .030 (same as what they come gaped at new).

lube chassis - every other ride or every 10 hrs or so

re-ring pistons - check the compression and when they start to loose a significant amount, hone cylincers and replace rings, check that the cylinder bore is in spec.

Make sure the chain is adjusted properly

Make sure the air filter stays clean, if you still have the stock airbox lid with snorkle then it should take a long time for the filter to get dirty.